The Red Gem
by Molly Grace 16
Summary: Gem was found on the streets of Dublith and raised by Greed and his chimeras. Ten years later, her family is killed by the military. As she sets out across Amestris, she tries to sort out her feelings for a greedy homunculus and a Xingese prince. On Hiatus
1. Rain

A/N: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. If I did, it wouldn't have been nearly as good. I only own my OC. I will also switch the POV a lot in the story.

Chapter 1: Rain

The first thing I clearly remember is the rain hitting my face. I was being carried. The man carrying me was running. He looked scared. I was about to ask why when I felt something sticky in my hair. I touched my fingers to it and when I pulled them back, my fingers were red. I wanted to know what this red stuff was. I word came to mind. _Blood: the life source of all living things_. The man was bleeding. I looked up and saw the blood coming out of his shoulder.

The man ran into a big, empty building. He set me down on the floor and stroked my face with his hands. I studied soft, brown hair and stormy gray eyes. His eyes looked kind. He put a hand to his wounded shoulder and started making marks on the floor with his blood. He was muttering to himself; something about not enough time. I wanted to get up to see what he was doing, but I wasn't sure how. My bottom half felt heavy. I don't think I was supposed to move anyway.

After a few minutes, the man came back to me. He looked sort of sad. I wanted to ask him why, but I wasn't sure how to communicate with him. "I don't know if you can understand me or not," the man said as he put his hand to my face once again. His voice sounded strained, like he was holding something back. "But I feel you must know how much I care for you. I will most likely never see you again after I do this, but I must complete you before they find me. They know you were not brought into this world by conventional means, and they will surely try to turn you into a weapon." _Weapon: An object used for destructive purposes._ I wanted to know who this 'They' was. Why did they want to turn me into a weapon?

"It doesn't matter what they want now," the man continued, "All that matters is that you become completed. Your soul is not quite whole yet, my child, but it soon will be. Once I fully open the Earth's energy to you, it won't matter that you weren't created with an entire soul. The Earth will be your soul instead. It already gives you knowledge and soon you will be able to feel." I wondered what he meant by 'feel'. I could feel many things. I could feel the ground, his hand, and the cloth I was wearing. What else was there?

Then, many loud noises came from outside the building. _"Dr. Copernicus! We have you surrounded! Surrender the weapon and you will not be harmed!"_ The man's face contorted in anger. "How dare they refer to my creation as a weapon?" He stood and faced the door. "The only way you're getting my masterpiece is when you pry her from my Cold, Dead Hands!" His voice was louder than it had been earlier. I liked it better when he was quieter. He turned back to me and knelt beside me. "It would seem that this is where we say goodbye." His eyes looked glassy. "I will die before I let these heathens make a mockery of my life's work. It will have to be somewhere far; somewhere not in the country, across the ocean perhaps." There was loud pounding on the walls of the building. "On second thought, it might be safer to just send you as far as I can pay." Pay? Who is he paying? And what is he paying with?

The man put his hands on the ground beside me and gave me a sad smile. "Just remember, you are and always will be my life's greatest achievement." Then the floor started to glow around me. The glow seemed to be in a definite pattern, but I didn't have enough time to look at it. Suddenly, everything slipped away and I was flying. I was flying through a sea of everything. I was everywhere and nowhere, everything and nothing. Time became meaningless. I was moving in a constant flow. The everything needed to go somewhere. It flowed into me, filling me with thoughts, emotions; life. This thing I was in… it felt like the whole world. The onslaught of new sensations sent my mind into overdrive. It couldn't handle everything at once. I blacked out.

(Dolcetto's POV)

It was raining slightly as I walked through the deserted streets of Dublith. Nobody would be out at this hour, so I didn't really worry about running into anyone. I few months ago I'd started living at the Devil's Nest with the other chimeras and Greed. Under normal circumstances, I probably would have left by now, but I wasn't really normal anymore. There was also the fact that I felt an overwhelming compulsion to stay near Greed since he was the one who saved me from being the Military's lab rat. Damn canine loyalty, but it wasn't like I really had anywhere else I could go.

I was walking past a small vacant lot when I noticed the oddest thing, and coming from a guy like me, that's saying something. There was a little kid lying in the middle of the lot, straight as a board. At first, I thought it was a corpse, but I noticed the kid's chest moving when I went to get a closer look. The kid smelled like blood, and I noticed there was blood matted in his hair. I didn't see any wounds, so it couldn't have been his.

The little guy couldn't have been more than five or so. The kid had dusty brown skin, kind of like an Ishvalan, but that was as far as the resemblance went. He had soft brown hair; a couple shades lighter than his skin and it went down a little farther than his chin. His features were soft, almost feminine. Ishvalans had much more angled features, even the kids. I wondered if his eyes were red or not.

I realized I had two options. I could either go back home and leave the kid here, or I could take him back with me and find a place for him when he wakes up. The smart thing to do would be to leave and pretend I never saw him, but it probably wasn't the right thing. The rational side of my brain starting listing off countless reasons why I should just leave: it wasn't any of my business, he'd just cause me trouble, Greed and Martel would give me hell about the whole thing, etc. Unfortunately, what was left of my conscience was telling me that I would be no better than scum if I didn't try to help this kid. Needless to say, my conscience won that argument.

I let out a sigh and bent down to pick the kid up. I put one arm around his shoulders and the other under his knees. He was really light. A made a note to get him some food when he woke up. That's when I noticed something. Beyond the blood smell, the kid barely had a scent. Sure, it was raining, but I still should have been able to get a whiff if I was this close. Even dead bodies had a scent. It wasn't so much that he didn't have one, it was more like it faded into the background; the same way I can't really smell my own scent because I'm around it so much. It was a real head-scratcher. Then I noticed something else. The little boy I was holding… was a little girl.

"Huh…didn't see that one coming." I let out a long sigh. I looked down at the small girl's sleeping face. "You better not be more trouble than you're worth kid. Otherwise, Greed will probably toss you out in the streets." I walked back a little faster than I normally would have. I didn't really want the kid to get sick because I'd probably end up having to take care of her. It didn't help that she was wearing what amounted to little more than a large shirt. It was already soaked through. After a few minutes, I finally made it back to the Devil's Nest.

I made it to my room without anyone stopping me and asking about the girl, but I credit that with the fact that most everyone in the place had already drunk themselves stupid. Being part dog also killed my desire for alcoholic beverages. Just another thing to love about being a _freak of nature_. I put the girl down on my bed and left to find the one person I had a chance of getting on my side.

(Martel's POV)

I was doing really well at the poker tables tonight. I had practically cleaned out every single one of the drunken jokers at my table so far and I was one hand away from taking the whole pot. Not to mention I had a straight flush and a killer poker face to boot. Nothing could throw me off my game tonight, or at least, that was what I was thinking until Dolcetto came up to the table.

"Hey, Martel, you got a minute? I need to talk to you." That dog-boy had the worst sense of timing. "Can't it wait? I'm a little busy if you hadn't noticed." I gestured to the large pile of poker chips that was about to be mine. He let out an irritated sigh. "All right, but after this hand I really need to talk to you, okay?" I told him okay and went back to the game. After I'd taken the pot, I collected my winnings and left the losers to their beer. I followed Dolcetto into the hall. He looked nervous, but I couldn't figure out why. "All right, spill it. What's so important that you had to cut my game short? You know Greed gets pissed when we don't take these guys for all their worth."

"I know, Martel, it's just…" he let out a sigh, "I was walking through the alleys a little earlier and I found something, or rather… someone." I raised an eyebrow. "It's kind of hard to explain. You really just have to see for yourself." He quickly started walking back towards his room. I rolled my eyes and followed. I might as well see what has him so worked up.

"Oh my God! She is just so adorable!" I felt my maternal side kicking in when I saw the little girl sleeping on Dolcetto's bed. "Shhh… You might wake her up." I took a deep breath to calm myself down. It had been a while since the last time I was so close to a small child. Parents are smart enough these days to tell their kids to stay out of our part of town, and I didn't dare try walking through the streets in broad daylight. I turned to Dolcetto. "Okay, spill. Who is she and why is she here of all places." It wasn't that I wasn't thrilled, I really was, but the Devil's Nest isn't exactly the best place for a little kid to be hanging around.

"That's exactly what I'd like to know." Dolcetto and I froze. I couldn't believe it. We actually forgot to close the door. We turned around slowly to see Greed leaning against the doorway; arms crossed over his chest. I snuck a peek at Dolcetto. The poor guy was sweating bullets. "Well…" he started, "I'm not really sure who she is. I found her in a vacant lot a little while ago. I couldn't bring myself to leave her there, so I brought her back here. I thought maybe she could tell us who she is when she wakes up and we could send her home or something." I had a feeling that if Dolcetto had a tail, it would be in between his legs right now.

Greed walked over to the girl. I couldn't believe she was able to sleep through all the noise we were making. He looked at her for a minute then turned back towards Dolcetto. "Is she Ishvalan? I can't tell." Dolcetto shrugged. "I don't think so. We'd have to look at her eyes when she wakes up." I decided to speak up. "So… what are we going to do with her?" Greed walked back over to the door. "She can stay for now. Come get me when she wakes up and I'll decide then. Who knows? She might be interesting to have around." Then he gave his trademark smirk and walked back towards the club.

Dolcetto and I let out long sighs of relief. I sat down on the edge of the bed and started stroking the little girl's hair. "You think there's any chance of Greed letting her stay here?" I asked absent-mindedly. The dog chimera leaned against the opposite wall and crossed his arms. "Hard to say; it's anyone's guess, really. If she's interesting, he might want her around." He gave a small laugh. "For all we know, he might keep her around just to get her in bed when she's old enough. I can already tell she'll be a real looker in a few years." I looked up at him with an expression of shock evident on my face. "Okay, don't even joke about something like that."

Dolcetto's face got really serious. "Who said I was joking, Martel? You know as well as I do that Greed wants everything and everyone. She's a little girl now, but who's to say he won't want her that way when she becomes a woman?" I felt a wave of determination come over me. "Well… I'll just have to do everything in my power to make sure that doesn't happen."

Dolcetto snorted. "Oh really, and just how are you going to accomplish that?" I shot the chimera a glare. "I'll think of something. Hey, do you mind if I stay here until she wakes up?" He seemed taken aback by what I had just asked. "I don't see why not. Last call is in about ten minutes anyway." "Thanks, I don't know about you, but, at her age anyway, I'd be scared out of my mind if I woke up in a strange place without knowing how I got there."

"ahh" I heard a small sound. It reminded me of a time I heard a dove cooing outside my window. I looked down and saw the little girl starting to stir. "Dolcetto, go and get Greed." He muttered sure and ran out. I started shaking the kid's shoulders. "Come on, Sweetie, it's time to wake up. You can't sleep forever." The girl made a few more sounds, and then sat up; rubbing her eyes with both hands.

Not long after, Greed and Dolcetto came walking into the room. The girl's arms froze in place. I guess she heard them come in or something. She moved her hands away from her face, looked towards the door, and opened her eyes. The three of us gasped. The girl's right eye was a stormy gray, but her left eye was a bright, ruby-red color. Both eyes sparkled with an odd mixture of intelligence and innocence. One thing was for sure, any doubts that Greed had about keeping this kid probably just went out the window.


	2. Gem

**A/N: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. If I did, it wouldn't have been nearly as good. I only own my OC. I will also switch the POV a lot in the story.**

Chapter 2: Gem

(Greed's POV)

I didn't like the way this kid stared at me. After she woke up, Martel got her cleaned up while Dolcetto searched for some clothes small enough to hit her. She didn't say anything, but she seemed to understand us. When she tried to follow Martel to the bathroom, she fell to her knees as soon as she tried to stand. It was kind of funny; like she'd never walked before. Although she picked up on it after she watched Martel walk around the room. At least she's not stupid.

After she was clean and dressed, the kid crawled back into Dolcetto's bed and fell back asleep. I don't really understand how she could still be tired, but Martel said little kids sleep a lot. Dolcetto slept on the floor that night. When she woke up the next morning, she went to the kitchen area in the back of the base. I'm still trying figure out how she knew we were there, or even how to find her way around for that matter. When I asked her, she just shrugged.

Now, instead of eating like a normal person, she's just sitting at the table and staring at me; like she's not quite sure what to make of me. That one red of eye of hers bothered me more than anything; not so much because it didn't match, but because of how much it reminded me of a Philosopher's Stone. The color was exactly the same, and I could have sworn it had that same occasional pulse of energy. She couldn't be a homunculus though, unless one of my siblings had gotten themselves killed recently and this was the replacement. That didn't really make sense though. For one, there's no real reason for her to be down here that I know of, two, she would have tried to kill me already if Father sent her, and three, she didn't have the Ouroboros mark on her anywhere.

She still hasn't said a word since we found her. I thought it was a bit strange because most kids her age don't know how to shut up. Martel came in and grabbed some food out of the fridge. She looked at the kid and then turned back to me. "Has she just been sitting there this whole time?" She stuck her thumb at the kid.

"Pretty much and she won't stop staring at me. It's freaking me out." Martel rolled her eyes at me and squatted in front of the kid.

"Hey, Sweetie," she rubbed her hand on the kid's head, "Are you hungry?" She had a confused look on her face, like she didn't know what Martel meant. Then, we all heard a rumbling noise from her stomach. "Heh heh, I'm going to take that as a yes. Wait right here and I'll get you something to eat."

Martel starting putting something together and the kid just sat there with a funny look on her face. She was poking her stomach. _'Huh…You'd think she never heard her stomach growl before.'_ Dolcetto came in not long after, ruffled the kid's hair, and sat in the chair next to her. "G'morning, little one, did you sleep well?" I raised an eyebrow. This was probably the best mood I'd seen the dog-boy in since he got here.

Martel put some eggs and bacon down if front of the kid; she just stared at them. She looked back at us with a questioning look. "Good grief, don't you know how to eat?" I said to her. She shook her head at me. My eyes widened in surprise. I was half joking when I said it. I didn't actually expect her to respond, much less with a "no".

"Don't worry. I'll show you." Dolcetto to the rescue. He then proceeded to show the strange child how to eat. After that, she pretty much inhaled everything on her plate.

"She needs a name," Martel said off-handedly. She was right of course. We couldn't exactly keep calling her kid. Dolcetto sat on the counter next to her and put his chin on his hands.

"Yeah, but it can't be just any old name. It should be something special; something that fits her." He was really getting attached to this girl; almost to the point where I couldn't bring myself to make fun of him for it.

"Wouldn't she already have a name at her age?" I asked trying to sound as disinterested as possible.

"Oh yeah," Martel said sliding off the counter. She walked over to the kid. "Sweetie, do you have a name?" The kid got a funny look on her face and her eyes lost focus for a second.

"_Name: a word or a combination of words by which a person, place, or thing, a body or class, or any object of thought is designated, called, or known."_ Our jaws dropped. I wasn't sure what surprised me the most: that she just spoke, the fact that she just sounded like a dictionary, or how completely and utterly adorable her voice sounded. It sounded like little tinkling bells.

"Please tell me I'm not the only one who just heard her speak." I was in too much shock to actually answer Dolcetto. Then she started looking at us with this curious glint in her eyes.

"Name?" She asked as she pointed a finger at me. I could hear the curiosity in her voice. When she was giving off that definition, her voice sounded lifeless. Now she actually sounded like a little kid. "Name?"

"Hey, Greed," Martel said still staring at the girl, "I think she's trying to ask your name." That was enough to bring me back to reality.

"The name's Greed, kid," I said with a smirk. She blinked a few times, seemingly processing what I told her, and then nodded. She did her little pointing and asking routine with Dolcetto and Martel too. For like, the next four hours, she just walked around the bar, pointing at people and things and asking for their names. She never had to ask the name of the same thing twice; soaking up all the information like a sponge. By dinner, she could speak well enough that people could understand her. She didn't do that weird dictionary thing again though. _'Maybe it was just a onetime thing?... Yeah, and maybe I'm not really a homunculus.'_

(Dolcetto's POV)

After dinner, I decided to take the kid up to the roof to watch the stars. It would keep her busy until she fell asleep and keep her away from the less child friendly activities of the Devil's Nest. I saw no need to corrupt her at such a tender age. Maybe when she was old enough to know better, but for now, the roof was the safest place.

As soon as we got to the roof, she started pointing and asking for names again. When she looked up though, this look of pure awe fell over her. She ran over and started pulling at my sleeve and pointing at the sky.

"What's that?" It was the most excited I'd seen her all day. I sat down on the roof and put her in my lap. I started pointing things out to her.

"Well, that bit bluish-black space is called the sky. During the day, it's a much lighter shade of blue. And all those little dots of light, those are the stars." I thought if her eyes got any wider, they might just pop out of her head. "Also, some of the stars are lined up so if you look at them right, they make pictures." I started pointing out some of the constellations to her. "That one there, it's the Big Dipper, and off to the side is the Little Dipper."

I loved the look she had with each new constellation I showed her. Eventually, she pointed one out to me. "What's that one?" I looked where her finger was pointing.

"That one, that's Gemini, the twins." She got that weird, blank look on her face again. Her eyes kind of glassed over like they did at breakfast earlier.

"_Gemini: __the Twins, a zodiacal constellation between Taurus and __Cancer__ containing the bright stars Castor and Pollux._" Then she looked at me like nothing happened. I decided to just shake it off and think about it some other time.

"You know, there's an interesting story about Gemini. It says that people born under it are like two people in one body; a split personality. Kind of like you, Kid." She seemed to be thinking about something really hard, and for a minute, she looked so much older than she was. Then, she pointed to herself.

"Gemini?" I chuckled at that one. Then I gave it a bit of thought.

"You know, that wouldn't be half bad for a name. Gemini," I tested it out a few times. "Maybe we should shorten it. Like… Gem, do you like that for a name?" She smiled and nodded. "Gem it is. It has a nice ring to it. Greed will probably get a kick out of it." I leaned back and Gem snuggled up into my chest. After a while, I heard her breathing even out, so I knew she was asleep. I gave a light kiss on her head and whispered into her hair, "Goodnight, Gem, and welcome to the family."

**How was that for some major fluff? I'm planning of giving Dolcetto and Gem a bit of a father/daughter relationship. I'll try to make the next chapter a bit longer. It's mostly going to be important moments as Gem is growing up in the Devil's Nest. I'm not sure when I'll update again, but I'll get it out as soon as I can. I'll also try to make another part of the story in Gem's POV.**


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